As long as the sleeve is padded enough I don't really see the difference in protection.

The difference is that in order to use these readers, you will have to remove them from the sleeve. So if you drop one while outside the sleeve, the risk of damage s a lot greater then had it been in a proper cover.

The difference is that in order to use these readers, you will have to remove them from the sleeve. So if you drop one while outside the sleeve, the risk of damage s a lot greater then had it been in a proper cover.

I'm not sure a cover is that much help if you drop your reader. It helps prevent twisting forces (which a sleeve does not do) and sharp pressure on the screen (e.g. from the corner of another device in, say, a backpack). A sleeve also helps for the latter very common failure mode, but only if you always use it.

I'm not sure a cover is that much help if you drop your reader. It helps prevent twisting forces (which a sleeve does not do) and sharp pressure on the screen (e.g. from the corner of another device in, say, a backpack). A sleeve also helps for the latter very common failure mode, but only if you always use it.

A cover is not the perfect protection. But it does protect more then without. Last time I dropped my reader it landed on it's back where the cover was there to protect it.

Personally, I think there should be more of an emphasis on using wrist straps. This virtually eliminates the risk of dropping the device while adding only a negligible amount of weight. Is there any way of adding a section about wrist strap compatability to the Wiki? The Sony Readers all have wrist strap posts, the Kindles don't. What about the Irex, Hanlin, and Netronix devices?

There will be covers. The company that is supposedly selling these pre-order are offering covers for both devices for a separate price. With either size you will have to buy the cover separately like you do with the kindle. I don't agree however that you have to have a cover. That is a personal decision. With my kindle I have a sleeve that is frankly more protective that any cover I have seen. It has a hard shell and I have no problems with it. With my sony reader I do use a cover. I just can't ever find a cover for the kindle that is as light as the sony cover and I don't want to add a bunch of weight to my reading experience.

A cover also protects against corner/edge drops. Even if the cover is open the edges usually protrude beyond the side of the device and will cushion the fall.

I suspect that the need for a cover versus sleeve depends on the type of reader that you are, and I'm probably more like JSWolf in this regard. I carry my book with me everywhere. I read on the couch, at the table, and in the [let's not go there]. When I go to my car, I take my reader and turn on Text-to-speech.

Anyway, this means I often carry my reader open as well as a stack of other stuff I'm taking with me from place to place. And I do have occasional drops when it is opened. If you only read sitting down on the couch then you won't have this issue.

I have this picture of me as this person who never puts down their book and juggles two or three different things at a time. My nose is buried in a book and life may sometimes pass me by. Sometimes a thing or two that I am juggling will dropss (literally). On the other hand, I have this picture of a 'sleeve' user as someone who is 'prim and proper'. They schedule reading time for an hour and go to pick up their reader from the shelf where it is stored away. They sit in their reading chair while maintaining correct posture and carefully remove their reader from its sleeve.

A cover also protects against corner/edge drops. Even if the cover is open the edges usually protrude beyond the side of the device and will cushion the fall.

Up until you drop it next to a desk, the cover opens away from the reader body slightly as it falls, and the corner of the reader lands on the foot of the table... thankfully it survived (well, it was only a small drop!)

For the Jetbook (5 inch screen), I just bought a Moleskine small reporter's notebook, sliced out the pages and glued the back to the back of the Jetbook.
It keeps the "very small form factor" I was looking for and covers the screen nicely. It does not cover all the buttons or edges.